Covalently crosslinked synthetic hydrogels are especially suitable as tissue engineering scaffolds due to their well-defined and easily tunable biochemical and biophysical properties. Here, we present a step-growth poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) hydrogel crosslinked by reversible hydrazone bonds and show its ability to mimic the viscoelastic properties of native muscle. Rheological and small molecule kinetic studies were also performed to study the formation and hydrolysis of the crosslinking bis-aliphatic hydrazone bond. The rate of gelation was found to correspond closely with the rate of bond formation and the rate of gel relaxation with the rate of hydrolysis, indicating that small molecule kinetic studies can play an important role in material design.

Dynamic hydrazone-crosslinked hydrogels provide an adaptable matrix for 3D cell culture

249th National Meeting (2015)

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